Broken - A Breredith Story
by Ummwaitwhat
Summary: "Mere! You're awake! You're okay!" "Yeah. Yeah, I am." She glanced around the room, looking at everyone's face and smiling at them until her gaze landed on the man holding her hand next to her. She stared into his blue eyes and then down at their interlocked hands, her eye brows furrowed. "I... I'm sorry," she mumbled, pulling her hand away from his. "But do I know you?"
1. Chapter 1

"What?" I asked into my phone, my voice cracking.

"Your friend, Ms. Meredith Stepien was put into the hospital due to a car accident with a person who had been texting, which is the assumed cause of the accident. I know it's late, but no one else answered my call. I'm sorry, Mr. Holden," the person on the other line said.

"Okay. Th-thank you," I stuttered, hanging up immediately afterwards.

The world around me was spinning so fast I had to lean against the wall to steady myself. I took a deep, shaky breath and allowed myself to grab my phone and send out a text to some of the other Team members.

"**Hey, guys,**" I wrote. "**So, in case you didn't hear the news, Mere was put into the hospital this evening. She was in a car accident. So if you have the time, visiting her would be appreciated. I'm on my way there now, and I don't think I'll leave for a while."**

I sent the message, grabbed my shoes, keys, and a jacket, and headed down the hallway towards the elevators.

When I arrived at the hospital, tears had stained my face. I received sympathetic and somewhat curious looks as I passed by patients, workers, and other visitors on my way to the front desk. I cleared my throat upon my arrival. The receptionist looked up from her computer screen and gave me a weary smile.

"Hi, how may I help you?"

I smiled weakly and replied, "Hi, can you tell me what Meredith Stepien's room number is, please?" She nodded, turning back to her computer.

"How do you spell it? S-T-E-P-" she asked, typing as she said the letters.

"I-E-N," I finished for her.

She pressed enter and said, "Meredith?" I nodded frantically. "She's in room 214." I thanked her and quickly (VERY quickly) walked to the nearest elevator.

On the way up, I texted everyone the room number. Only then did I notice that it was already 2 o'clock in the morning.

_That's why no one's responding, _I thought, sliding through the elevator doors when it opened just enough for me to.

I practically ran down the hall towards Meredith's room until I realized what awaited me behind her door. I slowed down my pace as I was around the corner of her room. Taking the last few steps, I took slow, jagged breaths, trying to calm myself down.

When I finally arrived at the door, my hand turning the handle, my phone rang obnoxiously loud compared to the serenity of the hallway and waiting room. I fumbled with my pockets until I managed to pull it out and answer the call without checking to see who it was.

"WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO MEREDITH?" The person yelled, causing me to wince and pull the phone away from my ear. I glanced at the Caller ID. It was Denise.

"Hey, D. It's okay, she's fine. She, uh... Just a car accident. She's kinda passed out at the moment, but she's fine. I'm at the hospital now. Don't worry," I said, trying my hardest not to break down and cry. I was kinda glad Denise had called. It was a way for me to stall and not see her.

"I can't make it there tonight! I was visiting Ann Arbor! Tell her... Tell her I'll be there soon! Before she can wake up," Denise begged, her voice weak.

I nodded and said, "I promise, D."

I heard Denise sigh before saying, "Take care of her, Brian. I'm counting on you." Then the line went dead.

* * *

I paced back and forth in front of Meredith's door before finally realizing that I needed to see her before I would collapse here from anxiety and need a hospital room of my own. I know it seemed a bit selfish to not want to see her, but... I don't know. I felt that it wasn't right for me to see her so hurt. She had done no harm. Hell, the only harm she ever does is keep a secret for some sort of surprise. Truth be told, I was scared. I was scared of what had happened to her. Of what she would look like. Of what she would feel or think when I told her what happened.

I shook my head and pushed those thoughts behind me.

I turned the doorknob without a moment's hesitation and burst into the room. I closed the door and opened my eyes to reveal Meredith on the usual hospital bed.

I almost smiled at her calm face before scanning the rest of her body. I fell to my knees and whimpered. She looked so... Broken.

It seemed as though every bone in her poor, fragile body was broken and there were all sorts of tubes and wires hooked up to her.

I crawled to the chair beside the bed and grabbed her hand. "I'm so sorry, Meredith," I mumbled into her sheets as I cried. "I'm so, so sorry."

I continued to cry until I snapped out of it. There were people everywhere who were crying because their loved ones just died or they found out they had cancer. I was crying because... Because one of my best friends was in the hospital from a car accident because of a fucking person too distracted with his life to worry about the rules of the God damn road.

I gritted my teeth and took slow breaths to calm myself down.

_God damn, Holden. Don't get yourself worked up about this. Meredith is okay and that's all that matters._

I looked at her peaceful face again. This time, I did smile. Meredith is alive and well. Although, she could've been better, she's still here with me. With all of us.

I let out a wet laugh, which surprised myself.

"Hey, Mere. This is Brian. I'm sorry not everyone's here. Denise said she'd be here sometime soon. The others are probably all sleeping, but you got yourself stuck here at an ungodly hour, so that's pretty much your fault," I said sarcastically. I didn't think she could hear me, but...

But I swear I saw her smile.


	2. Chapter 2

I didn't realize I had fallen asleep until I lifted my head from the side of Mere's hospital bed. I wiped what felt like drool from the sides of my mouth and my cheek and groaned, feeling a cramp in my neck. I stood up to stretch and walk around to loosen my stiffened legs. I headed towards the door before turning back to look at the unusually quiet Meredith and saying, "I'll be right back." I opened the door and paced down the hallway.

I noticed that there were still very few people out and about. Most people I saw were workers; others were sleeping in the waiting rooms or walking to stretch, like I was. I looked around for a clock and noticed it was only four in the morning. I had just slept for an hour at the most, since I had spent most of my time talking to Meredith, regardless if she could hear me or not, and discussing her condition with the nurses that came in and out of her room.

Deciding I was stretched out enough, I turned around and strolled towards Meredith's room. A doctor came out of the room just as I was about to reach for the handle. "Oh, hi," he said, jumping at the sight of me.

"Hi," I replied, stepping back to let him through. He moved out of the doorway and stood next to me.

"You must be a friend of Meredith's." When I nodded at him, he continued.

"Well, my name is Doctor Howard, and I've been watching over her for the time she's been here."

I nodded in understandment. "And how's she doing, sir?" I asked, leaning against the wall.

"She's doing great. A lot better than what was expected of her. She's a fighter," he complimented, the obvious look of surprise on his face.

I laughed. He didn't have to tell me that twice.

"Yes, well, if she happens to wake up, just call for me, and we'll see how she's really doing, Misterrrr..." His sentence fell short when he realized he never learned my name.

"Brian. Brian Holden." I stuck my hand out for a handshake. Dr. Howard happily complied, grabbing my hand and shaking.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Holden," he grinned at me. I smiled back. Dr. Howard was on the verge of walking away before hesitating and turning back to face me.

"If you want my honest opinion, Mr. Holden," he said in a hushed tone, "I seriously believe Ms. Stepien will be fine. She won't give up. Especially with friends as great as you guys." I stared at him and shook his hand again, too tired to ask why he used plural words.

"Thank you, sir," I said gratefully.

Dr. Howard smiled and gave me a quick pat on the back before leaving me alone outside of Mere's door. I sighed, releasing all previous worries about Meredith's condition and let myself back into the room. I looked up from my previous scenery of the hospital floor to see Mere in the same spot I had left her in, but someone else was in the chair next to her. Dylan.

* * *

"What are you doing here?" I asked, pulling a chair on the other side of Mere's bed.

"Same reason you're here. To see Meredith," he responded flatly.

"This early? You didn't reply to my messages either," I pointed out.

"You're here this early. And yeah, I didn't," he said. He sounded like a robot, his responses automatic.

"Well, I was already awake..." I replied, awkwardly. "Dylan, what's wrong?"

He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Nothing," he said.

Unsure of what to do, I sat there staring at the unconscience Mere, occasionally glancing at Dylan. He remained silent, barely moving.

Something was definitely wrong, but I couldn't figure out what. He was always close to Mere- almost as close as I am- but shouldn't he be happy that she's okay? Maybe he just hadn't figured that out, yet. I decided to mention it to him, only to realize what a mistake it was.

"She's gunna be okay, you know? So far, there's no evidence to show-"

"So far? _So far? _That's the exact same thing as saying 'There's not anything wrong with her, but shit happens.' Doyou know how _awful _I feel? I wasn't there to help her. I may not look as broken as Meredith does, but I am _dying _on the inside, Brian. She could fucking die in here. She could fucking _leave _us. Do you understand that? We won't see her smile or crazy morning hair. We won't hear her jokes or her nervous giggling. We won't feel her hugs or her high fives. We won't_ have_ her anymore. And it won't be the same." Dylan stood up as he was talking, clenching his fists in frustration. I was scared to see this side of him. He was never this negative.

"Dyl, she's gunna be okay. I promise. You just have to trust me, okay?" I said to him softly, trying to get him to sit down again.

He stared at me incredulously. "Meredith is laying in that hospital bed, Brian. Not you. You have no idea if she's going to be okay or not." He started to walk out of the room before hesitating at the door.

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Brian," he muttered, pulling the door open and walking out.


	3. Chapter 3

I was completely stunned. I didn't realize how much Mere must mean to Dylan. I figured he wouldn't want to talk to me, but I still called him to apologize. As I expected, I was sent straight to voicemail.

"Hey, Dyl," I said when I heard a beep. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up. It's just... I can't help, but feel like she's going to wake up. It's just so surreal. And you're right. I'm not laying in the hospital bed. She is. But I can still be happy that she's alive and well _now _

We'll have to deal with the future later. Right now, I'm just focusing on the present, so I guess we have different points of view on the situation, but... She'll come back. You and I both know that she'll do her hardest to come back."

I hung up the phone and grabbed Mere's hand again. I sighed.

_Jesus, this was getting hectic, _I thought.

It was only a couple of hours since I had first received the phone call that Meredith was in the hospital, and I already felt drained.

I slumped over, laying my head down on Mere's bed. My heavy eyelids slowly closed. "Goodnight, Mere," I murmured, yawning. I smiled at her and finally fell asleep.

* * *

Sunlight broke through the windows, hitting my eyes and waking me up. I shook my head and leaned back in the chair, recalling what had happened last night. I rubbed my eyes and let the surrounding focus.

There were people in here.

"Guys, hey!" I said, standing up.

Before me were Walker, Lauren, Jaime, Eric, Jade, Nick Gage, Mark, Clark, Denise, and even Joey. I scanned the room again and noticed Dylan by the door, far away from anyone else.

Everyone smiled weakly at me. Denise hugged me. I groaned from being stiff and hugged her back.

"Thank you for being here, Brian," she whispered.

"Hey, I wanted to be here," I replied into her hair.

Denise pulled away and wiped tears away from her face.

I frowned and looked at the group, who was also teary-eyed.

"Guys, the doc says that Mere should be okay. She's responding well to everything, and..." I took a shaky breath, feeling my own tears forming in my eyes. "And she should wake up soon."

"Nah, she _will_ wake up. She still hasn't killed me for eating that last brownie, remember?" Walker said, in a successful attempt to make everyone laugh.

"Yeah, and we still need to go to try that new restaurant downtown," Jaime pointed out.

Soon, everyone in the room blurted out things that they hadn't accomplished with Mere, laughing at the fond memories. Well, everyone except one.

I looked at Dylan, unsure if I should point this out to the group, but Denise touched my shoulder and shook her head no.

"He's not exactly being positive about this situation. He barely acknowledged us when he walked in. And he hasn't moved from that spot since he got there," Denise explained, glancing worriedly at the man by the door.

He was right last night. He did look like he was dying inside. His red, puffy face was wet from his recent cycle of tears and he didn't look up from the tiled floor at all. He was almost like a statue.

I frowned at Denise. She knew what I was going to do.

"Alright, fine," she sighed, taking a step away from me. "Try your best."

I nodded and walked towards Dylan. When I reached him, I grabbed his shoulder and pulled him into a hug before I could change my mind. After a second, he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into a bone-crushing hug.

Then he started to cry.

Full on wailing, more like. His tears were starting to stain my shirt, and I didn't mind. As long as he wasn't holding his emotions inside anymore.

"It's okay, buddy. She'll be okay. She'll be okay," I repeated over and over into his ear as he cried.

The others were starting to stare, taking in the scene before them. I didn't car, though. Dylan was breaking and that was the first step into making him be okay again.

I had cracked the man who couldn't be moved.


End file.
